Hair & Scar
by Alzackri
Summary: The brutal story of how Yamamoto received his facial scar and the reason why Haru cut her hair short. Will Yamamoto be shot? Will Haru's first kiss be with a stranger? Contains adult themes, some language and scenes of mafia violence. The pair's bond of trust in Vongola is tested and they must decide if they want to remain part of the the world of Mafioso or be broken by it.
1. Chapter 1

**_This is the harsh story of how Yamamoto received his facial scar and why Haru cut her hair . Their bond in the Vongola famiglia is severely tested and they must decide whether they really wish to continue in the world of Mafioso. Please be advised, the chapters depict brutal mafia violence and tactics similar to real life. Sometimes, the good guys win but they still receive wounds._**

* * *

_***Chapt. 1***_

Japan in late September was charming this time of year. Crisp morning air combined with warm sunny days and the barest hint of yellowing grass on the sides of the sidewalks. A woman could get away with wearing a light cardigan and yet still wear a skirt. A man could still work outside in short sleeves and work up a sweat. Schools were into the fall semester and the peak season of test anxiety was still a few weeks away so large crowds of uniformed students still lounged at the cafés and shops after school before the cram days cloistered them inside. Japan was peaceful…well, peaceful except for one house.

"Crap. Crap. Crap. Crap! I am so late!" Haru Miura hurtled out of her front door. Cramming the rest of her breakfast into her mouth and chugging a bottle of orange juice she dashed down the street.

"Haru wait! You forgot your lunch!" her mother's words trailed after her.

"No time for that! I'll buy it at school!" Haru called over her shoulder and tossed her orange juice can into a passing receptacle.

If she was lucky she would only get a tardy and not an absence on her card. So much for her years of attempting to get the perfect attendance award. She had kissed THAT particular prize goodbye long ago when she had missed all that time being stuck in the future with the rest of her Vongola family.

Many months had passed since then they had come back, and yet she still missed living with Kyoko and the boys. Perhaps that was why she was always so late to school in the mornings? Compared to the future, she had nothing to do now; no meals to prepare, no errands to run, no one counting on her to get the house or kids ready each day, no dangerous enemies to run from. Honestly, nothing to do so she just slept in.

Once again, she had become plain old Midori High school student Haru Miura, who spent her days at gymnastics club and visiting cake shops.

Since she went to a different school than her Vongola family, she had been feeling quite isolated. Of course, before the future trip she had been in the same situation, but it had not been much of an issue at that time. Now, however, she missed them, and being aware of her role in the mafia, she felt safer when they were all in a group.

Being alone, even at school she felt exposed. Who knew when they could be attacked next? She had begged her parents for a transfer, but they had flat out refused. Her father especially had been against it. He said he had worked hard at getting her into such an elite school like Midori and Namimori High, where everyone else went, was definitely _not_ an elite school.

With a deep sigh Haru finally arrived at her building of learning and slid in through the gate just as it slammed shut.

_***Back at the Miura household**_*****

"Honey, what are we going to do?" Mrs. Miura mumbled to her husband. They sat at the kitchen table with a small stack of money in front of them.

"This isn't enough, they won't accept it." She continued.

"I KNOW!" her husband slammed a fist on the table, "Dammit, I need more time." He raked a hand through his hair. Mr. Miura looked defeated in his rumpled suit that stretched across his generous midsection. Deep stress lines stretched under his eyes making his fat face look haggard.

"I don't know what to do…we've sold practically everything. The stock we had in your company, the car, the computers, even drained Haru's college fund and it's still not enough." His wife said nothing and just looked at her hands.

"Maybe we can beg them for a few more months until you get that raise at the University." She suggested. Her husband looked crestfallen.

"We're going to have to. They get more violent every time. We'll have to play on their sympathies if they have any." Husband and wife looked dejectedly at each other before standing up and leaving for the corporate world.

* * *

_***At Midori High School***_

Haru gnawed at her pencil, not paying attention to the teacher. It was her last class, and having propped her book up in front of her, she was too preoccupied with texting on her phone to listen.

"_How is Italy_?" she punched in the letters…

"_Awesome! Reborn, Tsuna, Gokudera, and Ryohi have meetings all day with the Italian bosses so Bianchi and I are sightseeing_."…

"_Really? What are you doing_?"…

"_We're eating pastry's right now at Ciuri Ciuri near the coliseum. Its amazing! Wish you were here. Its even better than the cake shop in Shibuya"…_

"_Im so jealous!"…_and Haru meant it. Tsuna had invited Kyoko to accompany him on an official Vongola business trip to Italy along with most of the other boys. The only ones left in Japan were Yamamoto and Hibari who had remained behind as the rear guard. Haru had not been asked to go and it still stung. She didn't think she'd been intentionally left behind…she had just, well, not been thought of. Besides, her parents would NEVER have allowed it. Haru knew Kyoko was still Tsuna's first choice when it came to female companionship, and she had grieved deeply in resignation. She had known it was coming because she had seen the evidence in her room when they had visited the future. Among the expensive cosmetics, clothes, and perfumes she had found in her house, was a group photo of her Vongola family with Tsuna wrapping an arm around Kyoko. It had been inevitable but it still made her sad.

The bell rang and school finished and finally the long, tedious day ended.

* * *

***On the Streets***

Haru meandered down the avenues of the busy shops, not really in the mood to do anything. Home had not been such a pleasant place since she had come back from the future. Her parents had been very distant and distracted, they barely acknowledged her presence anymore. She felt like she was in the way so she didn't want to be at the house much. Right now she felt bored and lonely.

As was often the case when she was alone, she allowed herself to put on her ipod headphones and slip into daydreams. Future dreams of costume making, eating food, and maybe one day getting a boyfriend. She was so lost in her fantasy that she didn't even notice that someone was yelling out her name from the side of the street.

"Yo! Haru!" a boy cupped his hands and shouted out to her.

"Hahi?" she snapped to reality and jerked her head to the shop beside her. A tall, darkly handsome young man with the physique of an athlete waved a hand at her and grinned widely.

"Yamamoto-kun. What are you doing here?"

"Haha, what do you mean? This is where I live." Haru looked around and realized she had wandered farther than she thought because the shop, Yamamoto Sushi, was in front of her in all its raw fishy glory. Yamamoto was standing outside wearing an apron and holding a tray of maki rolls.

"Do you want a sample? Dad's making me hand these out to attract customers."

"Sure. Wow! These look good." Haru helped herself to a piece and licked her lips. "Mmmmmm, Your dad makes the best sushi in all of Tokyo." She gushed. Yamamoto looked pleased.

"Just for that you can have another if you want."

"Thank you!" she reached for another roll when her eyes were drawn to a side by an epic looking sign that appeared to be covered in frosting.

"Wait a minute! You have a cake shop next door now?!" and indeed there was. A ferociously pink storefront poked out from the building inviting all passersby to come inside and indulge in confectionary.

"Yeah. That opened last week. Dad doesn't like it, says its too frilly and pink, but it brings customers by so he's grudgingly allowed its presence." Yamamoto started explaining but trailed off when he saw Haru wasn't listening. Stars glistened in her eyes and a bit of drool on the corner of her mouth.

"You could go in if you want…" He grinned and gestured towards the door. Haru didn't even acknowledge him but allowed the magnetic pull of the sweet tooth to draw her in.

The display cabinets held a dizzying array of cakes. Many she recognized, many she didn't and she couldn't wait to spend her allowance trying them out.

"So Haru, which one do you think I should get?" Yamamoto's voice piped up beside her.

"Hahi?" she answered automatically. She hadn't expected Takeshi to follow her.

"Well…they all look so good but I don't eat sweets much so I don't know what's good or not." He laughed a bit sheepishly. Haru put a finger to her chin and looked over the selection.

"What kind of flavors do you like Yamamoto-kun?"

"Hmmm…I like caramel and melon flavors." Haru made a face. Strange combo of preference.

"Of the ones Im familiar with from other shops, the 'sweet monster' cupcake is a really good caramel one and so is the 'brown river' if you want ice cream mixed with your cake. I'd recommend either of those." Yamamoto turned to the expectant clerk and ordered the monster cupcake. She handed it to him and he took a massive bite. His eyes lit up and he gave Haru a thumbs up.

"Awesome!" he mumbled with his mouth full.

He really was cute with crumbs all over him…wait…cute? She blinked a few times at the sudden realization that she found her friend attractive. Then she ordered her usual favorite-strawberry shortcake.

They plunked down at an outside table and dug into their treats. Haru took a forkfull of her cake. Ahh, bliss, nothing could brighten her up like whipped cream and berry sauce. She watched Yamamoto devour his cupcake with amusement. Sure he was cute, she admitted it, but she had never thought of him that way before. It wasn't a bad thought, not only did he have a delightful personality but she always felt very comfortable and free in his presence. The exact opposite of Gokudara. She smiled and giggled a bit to herself. Sure, she still liked Tsuna but she could enjoy Yamamoto's presence if she wanted.

"Here do you want a bite of mine?" she offered.

"Sure!" and he took her fork and dug in. "So, how are you doing these days? I haven't seen you much."

"Well, since Kyoko and Bianchi have been gone in Italy and the kids have been with Dino, I haven't really had a reason to hang around much. Its not like Hibari loves my company either.

"You should come around more. Come by the restaurant anytime and I'll have dad make you some food. It's on me since you're family." Yamamoto winked.

"Hahi? Really? That sounds great, I love your dad's food. Definitely, I'd love to." Haru brightened.

"Great. You wanna come over for dinner tomorrow? I'll take you back home on my motorcycle after we eat."

"I'll ask my parents. Thank you Yamamoto-kun."

"Oh, and you can drop the honorifics. Call me Takeshi. We're family now. We never call you anything but Haru anyways so you can return the favor." He took another big bite of her cake. Haru reddened a bit but looked pleased.

"Oh, ok then, if you say so. Takeshi…it feels weird on the tongue but I'll give it a try." She smiled broadly at him. Yamamoto's cheeks pinked a bit. He liked her smile a lot and her cheerful ponytail was always cute. He briefly imagined what she would look like in a baseball cap and sports jersey like some of his teammates' girlfriends who cheer at their games. He liked the thought immensely. Maybe he could convince her to come to a game of his and wear one? The girl did love dressing up in costumes a lot, so surely she had a baseball jersey somewhere.

"Takeshi! What are you doing? You're supposed to be giving out samples, not associating with the pinky cake people!" a voice gruffly called behind him. Tsuyoshi Yamamoto, proud and tall in a white chef's hat, leered over his son's shoulder with his hands on his hips.

'Yo dad. What's up?" his son grinned, lifting a hand in greeting.

"Hi Mr. Yamamoto." Haru waved.

"Oh, Haru. Nice to see you again." Tsuyoshi realized her presence. "Takeshi, you should have told me you were on a date."

"Hahi!?" Haru reddened.

"No, no, dad. We're just hanging out." Yamamoto laughed, not even missing a beat.

"Then get back to work slacker!" Tsuyoshi smacked Yamamoto lightly on the back of his head.

"Yes, yes…Im going. Sorry Haru." Yamamoto smiled and got to his feet and put a hand in front of his face apologetically.

"No. I should be going now too. My parents probably want me back by now." Haru stood up and deposited her tray at the receptacle.

"Bye Takeshi!" Haru flounced away waving.

"Don't forget to ask them about dinner tomorrow!" He yelled back.

"Dinner?" Tsyuoshi asked.

"Yeah, I asked her to come eat at the restaurant tomorrow night if her parents give permission."

His father folded his arms and nodded vigorously in approval.

"Cute, sweet, polite, good-natured. Yup, I like her. She'll be perfect for both you and the store. Maybe I'll aks HER to hand out the maki rolls next time. We'd attract better business."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Yamamoto questioned, innocent as always. Tsuyoshi just laughed mysteriously, gave a thumbs up, and entered the restaurant.

What Haru didn't know at that moment was that her parents really DIDN'T want her coming home.

* * *

**_*Tune in next chapter to enter Haru and her parent's nightmare. Will Yamamoto be shot before he knows what's happening?_**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Enter the bad guys, Yamamoto is held at gunpoint, and why is Haru is dressed like Avril Lavigne?**_

* * *

_***Chapt. 2***_

_***At the Miura Household***_

*knock, knock*

Mrs. Miura padded to the door with trepidation, nervous to see who had come to visit. Lately when people knocked on their door it nearly gave her a heart attack, worried about who it would be. Maybe, if they were lucky, it would be the neighbor lady.

Unfortunately, it WASN'T the neighbor lady.

"Hi there ma'am, is the husband at home?" a thin, ugly little man with a wrinkled face and an expensive suit smirked at her and she instantly felt a shiver up her spine. She inhaled bravely and let the man and his two companions into the living room.

"He-he'll be here in a few minutes. He's just coming home from the university." She said in a jittery voice. As if on cue, the portly mathematics professor himself walked up the step carrying his attaché case and coat. He gulped when he saw the men.

"Good day gentlemen." He hedged cautiously.

"Get in here Miura…sit down." was the curt reply. The two nervous spouses sat down on the couch in the living room. The tall man lit a cigarette, inhaled deeply, and exhaled a long stream of smoke before letting out an annoyed sigh.

"I'm tired of coming here Miura…" he eyed the couple coldly.

"Y-yes. I know you are. We-we have some money for you…honey, go get the money." Mr. Miura poked his wife. She practically sprinted to the kitchen and returned with two thick bundles. She set them on the coffee table in front of their creditor, and retreated with head bowed. Thin man motioned to his companion to slowly count out the bills. The money man shook his head after he was finished. Thin man sighed again.

"Miura, you disappoint me." The creditor left the cigarette hanging in his lips and slowly started taking off the thick rings adorning his fingers and handed them one at a time to his associate. Mr. Miura started protesting and pleading that he would get the rest if only he had some more time. The third gangster went into the dining room and grabbed a kitchen chair and shoved back the coffee table to make room for it. The thickly muscled thug then picked Miura up by the scruff of his shirt and deposited him roughly.

"I think you need a little incentive."

"Please spare him! We'll get you the money…just wait a few more months till he gets his raise. We'll pay back every penny, we promise!" Mrs. Miura started crying.

"Sorry ma'am, but the big boss is tired of waiting. Kosui wants his cash now and we're going to get our piece even if we have to physically take it out of your husband's flesh." The thin man growled and put on a pair of thick leather gloves from his pocket. He reared back and landed a powerful punch on the poor debtor's jaw. His wife instantly screamed. Mr. Miura could not even get words out as his jaw started to crack. Many, many more blows followed.

* * *

"Hahi?" a small sound caught their attention. The beating was stopped momentarily as all eyes turned to the front door. Haru gasped and dropped her book bag, covering her mouth with her hands at the horrible scene. Her father was slumped in a chair in her living room spitting broken teeth out of his mouth, his face puffy and bloody; her mother was helplessly crying and three strange men who looked like stereotypical yakuza gangsters in expensive suits had invaded her house. One of the thugs jerked her into the room, slammed the door behind her.

"Well, well…what do we have here?" the thin man got an awed look on his face, much like a cheetah spotting a baby antelope with a broken leg on the Serengeti.

"Mom? Dad? What's going on?!" the teen shot a wild look at her parents.

"Haru…" her mother gaped at a loss for words.

"Let her go. She doesn't have anything to do with this." Her father gargled between spitting up blood.

"Shut up fat ass." Miura earned himself a smack across the back of the head. The thin man bent down and grabbed Haru by the face with one hand and turned it sideways, inspecting it. She smacked his arm away and glared angrily at him.

"Who are you people!?" she demanded. "Mom, what's going on?"

"Ooooh. Miura, you've been holding out on us." The man chuckled. His henchmen joined in with knowing smiles.

"I'm proud of you Miura…she's a pretty girl. I'm surprised such fine looks came from your wimpy balls." He grabbed Haru by the ponytail and yanked her head back to get another good look as she grit her teeth and protested. "Nice hair, I like it."

"L-leave her alone." her father attempted to get up, but was put down by a swift kick to the groin. He fell off the chair and sank to the floor.

"Daddy!" Haru screamed. Thin man tightened his grip on the nape of her neck.

"Now be a good girl, sit down, and be quiet." The man growled warningly to her and shoved her back down to the couch for good measure. He pointed a finger at her father and grinned.

"Miura, I've got good news for you. You DO have a way to pay us back for what you owe." Haru suddenly got a chill up her spine. Owe? Did her parents owe these men money?

"You cant take her." Her father mumbled. Thin man bent down to squat on his heels beside the professor's head and took another drag on his cigarette.

"You know Miura, I think you could be out of debt in a month, the johns just eat up young things like this like candy...she'll DEFINETLY turn a few pennies." He laughed savagely and then took the cigarette and rubbed the red hot tip into the side of Mr. Miura's face. The poor debtor, bellowed in pain and rolled away.

"No! you can't do that! Please, don't do this to her, take me instead." Haru's mother cried out.

"Unfortunately Mrs. Miura you're too old and wrinkly to be able to command much of a price. But your daughter on the other hand…well, she can easily pay off your remaining balance."

The thin man pulled out his cell phone, dialed and waited. The party on the other line answered and they began to talk happily

"Yuan? Yeah it's me. I've got another girl for you who wants to pay off her parents debt. A real pretty one…brown-eyed, brunette…I'd say 15 or 16…a picture? Sure hang on." He took his cell phone from his ear, lined it up, and snapped a shot of Haru's face.

"Did you get it? Good. Whatcha' think? You want me to bring her over? mhmm, mhmm. Yup, got it. We'll wait here." The tall man clicked his phone shut, squat down in front of Haru's father, who was still on the floor groaning, and grinned widely.

"You hear that Miura? You're in the clear. Yuan's gonna take her. She'll be here in a few to collect your little money maker." He patted Mr. Miura's face and laughed as the man flinched. "You should feel grateful to your daughter"

"Sit him up and make sure he doesn't try anything." The man ordered to his subordinate and then he turned around to a very confused and alarmed teenager. He leaned over Haru and placed his hands on the back of the couch, his face inches from hers. Close enough for her to smell his tepid, putrid breath and watch his blackened teeth sneer at her.

"Girl, I don't want to hear any fussing or complaining. This is just business. If you want to curse someone, curse your parents. They're the ones who didn't pay their bills. The family that owes together, pays together and that means that what we cant get out of them, we'll get out of you."

Haru didn't know what to think. She was scared, very scared. Her happy afternoon had taken a tragic turn when she came home to find her father beaten to a pulp, her mother captive, and now they were speaking about taking her away somewhere to work for them. Work doing what exactly? She had a sneaking suspicion of what they wanted…and didn't like it.

"Dad? Mom? Tell Haru what's going on." she looked to them for answers, but they wouldn't look at her. They just hung their heads, saying nothing. The thin man lit another cigarette and pointed a finger at the third thug.

"Yoshi, take the girl to her room and make sure she stays there. Yuan's gonna be here in a minute." The henchman grabbed Haru by the arm and shoved her down the hall.

"Ah, it's a good day. I really earned my keep with this score." He murmured to himself and savored the smoke. "Clean your face Miura. You look terrible." The creditor threw a handkerchief into the professor's lap.

* * *

Haru trudged to her room in a daze. Her mind was racing. What should she do?! Make a run for it? Try to call someone? Cry for help? Yoshi pointed to her desk and told her to sit down. He demanded her cell phone and she reluctantly dug it out of her pocket. He turned it off and threw it in the trash can.

"No smart moves girl. I've shot kids younger than you." He threatened and drew out his pistol to prove it. Haru held her breath and did as she was told.

"Where's the girl, Kojiro?" a tall, leggy, bleached blond with bad lipstick shoved open the Miura's door and strutted in as if she owned the place. She surveyed the gritty family scene without so much as a blink.

"Down the hall. Yoshi's with her." The thin man jerked a thumb in the direction. She took off without a word. Haru nearly fell out of her chair in startled surprise as her bedroom door was suddenly thrown open and the woman of previous description entered.

"Stand up girl, let me take a look at you." The woman ordered. Haru timidly did so. "Now twirl around, go on, completely around in a circle."

Yuan pushed her sunglasses onto the top of her head and assumed a thoughtful pose. Her eyes glided up and down the girl's body, analyzing, calculating prices. The she broke into a wide smile that did not look pleasant nor natural. She'd definitely had some plastic surgery work done. She too assumed the awed look of devilish delight that the thin man had showed earlier.

"Oh my god, you're gorgeous! You are definitely worth my time. I have so many clients I can line up. Good clients, RICH clients. Business will be booming. Tell me girl, do you have a boyfriend?"

"A boyfriend? No, not really." Haru trailed off, brief images of Tsuna and Takeshi running through her mind.

"Do you still have your cherry?"

"Hahi?"

"What are you stupid? I'm asking if you still have your cherry. Are you a virgin?"

"Uh, um, yes, yes I am." Haru stumbled over her words at the sudden question and her face colored. She did not like this woman at all, she made her skin crawl. Yuan nodded approvingly.

"Excellent, then you will go directly to the big boss tonight. He's so impatient that I get him new girls, so you are an answer to my prayers!" Yuan started rummaging through Haru's closet and drawers tossing out different articles of clothing onto the floor. Haru gaped at the woman. The woman was speaking so fast she could barely keep up.

"How old are you?" the woman asked from inside the closet.

"I just turned 16." Haru said.

"Not anymore, if anyone asks, you say you're 14. I'll pick you up each day after school and take you to the club, you'll pick up clients there."

"Excuse me, but who are you?" Haru blurted. The woman stopped and turned with a sigh. "God, Kojiro didn't explain properly again did he." She then smiled haughtily at Haru. She stuck a hip out and struck a pose.

"I am Yuan. Top Madam of the Kosui yakuza. I am manager-in-chief of their entire pleasure quarters operation so let me be clear. You, my dear girl, are my latest asset. You will be using your body to pay off your parent's debt to the big boss and, until that considerable sum is paid in full, you will work for me." Haru wasn't stupid, but the full implications of why this woman was here suddenly hit her and all her suspicions were plainly confirmed.

"Pleasure quarters? Pick up clients? You mean prostitution don't you? You cant make me do that! I refuse to do that!" Yuan's smile turned sour and she bent over, stared Haru straight in the eyes, and flicked a long manicured finger into her face.

"Listen closely girly, your ass literally belongs to me now. And you'll use that ass to fuck whoever I say, when I say it. Don't give me trouble or I will smash your pretty nose so deep inside your skull even the coroner wont be able to pull it out to make you look decent at your funeral. And don't think I won't do it either. I have no problem disciplining my girls you understand."

Haru just gaped at her in disbelief.

"Hmmm, matching underwear..." Yuan murmured under her breath as she straightened up and walked to Haru's dresser to look through a drawer. She seemed to be going through a mental check list.

"Ah hah! Here we go! You have good taste in underwear girl. It's like Victoria's Secret barfed all over this drawer. I think this red wine color set with matching panties will excite him nicely." She threw a pair of unmentionables on the bed.

"Well, don't just stand there girl, change into those."

Haru was frozen to her chair.

"I don't want to." The girl said softly. Her eyes flicked towards the man in the doorway still gripping the pistol.

"Yoshi, god, cant you see she's embarrassed. Get out." The woman groused and kicked the grinning gangster out.

"And you," she turned back eyes narrow, voice cold. "Start stripping."

"I don't want to do this." Haru shook her head, tears beginning to prick the corners of her eyes.

"You don't have a choice in the matter." Yuan said grimly.

"No! I won't do it. I won't become a whore!" Haru shouted back angrily in defiance. A resounding slap was heard down the hall. Haru gripped her cheek from the force.

"You listen to me you little tramp, and you listen good. I don't take lip from my girls. Either you comply, or I go out there and tell Kojiro to take it out of your father, and then when he's dead, we'll move onto your mother. After she is dead, we'll move onto you. We'll beat, slice, and burn your face till you're unrecognizable and you'll STILL have a debt to pay off. We'll throw you on the worst street in the worst ghetto in Tokyo to pick up the nastiest, poorest johns who'll only pay a dollar a trick for such a disfigured hooker. And there you will stay until you pay off the money or die in the process."

The Madam crooned these words softly and dangerously.

"You wouldn't want to be responsible for the death of your parents and ruining your future when you are perfectly capable of preventing all of that now would you? It's either the scenario I just described, or you decide to strip off your clothes and wear the goddamn panties I put out for you. Do we have an understanding?"

Haru unbuttoned her uniform jacket.

"Good." The woman turned back to the closet. "He likes short school skirts so keep the one you're wearing now. We haven't given him a rocker-chick look in a while so put on these too." Yuan threw some other clothes on the bed while Haru changed in shame.

* * *

_***Outside on the sidewalk***_

Yamamoto grinned absent mindedly. He loved his evening jog. The stress of the day eased out of his shoulders with each pat of sneakers on the pavement. The dusky light and the sounds of the cicadas starting their evening concert made him feel easy and content. The day had been so enjoyable. His team had won the baseball game during P.E., he had gotten a decent grade on his math test, and he had eaten awesome cake with one of his loveliest friends.

Haru sure had looked cute in those new hair clips. It was kind of lame to notice and appreciate something as insignificant as sparkly hair clips on a girl, but he enjoyed beauty when he saw it…he was a guy after all. Not that he had been looking at her especially; it's just that he was the most aware of his surroundings out of the whole group—Reborn had said so. Speaking of Haru, wasn't her house coming up around the corner? Ah, what the heck, why not stop by and see if she'd give him a drink of water? He was pretty thirsty.

* * *

_***Inside the Miura House***_

Haru walked to the living room flanked by her new Handler. Her parents snapped their heads up. She was dressed in her short gray school skirt, black T-shirt with a random rock band name across the front, red vest and loose skinny tie. Bangle bracelets adorned her wrists, and black Converses without socks covered her feet. With her eye liner and mascara too heavy, and ponytail more tousled than usual, she personified the attractive punk-girlfriend look good enough for a magazine photo shoot.

"Guess what Kojiro, she's a virgin. I'm going to take this little beauty directly to the big boss's mansion tonight. You and I are going to make some serious extra coin for finding her." Yuan smiled.

"Seriously, a virgin at her age? NICE, I like it! I love it when we make bonus money." The thin man exclaimed.

Haru looked pleadingly at her parents. They were her last chance to avoid this.

"Dad, don't let them make Haru do this." Her words pierced her father. He quickly hung his head in shame and wouldn't meet her gaze.

"Mom?" Haru tried. Her mother looked away and said nothing. Haru's mouth dropped. Not a word? Nothing? Fear wedged a hole in her chest. Was this _really_ happening?

The thin man took a gun out of his shirt coat and put it to her mother's head. He looked at the girl with a threatening look that said _either you go or they die_. Haru dropped her gaze in resignation, the point had been made. There was no choice. She turned and walked out the door followed by Yuan with Yoshi close behind.

"Nice doing business with you Miura. We'll have her home in one piece. Maybe…maybe in one piece." The thin man laughed harshly and slammed the door behind them. An expensive black Mercedes was parked waiting for them as they walked to the curb.

"Yo, Haru!" a voice called from down the street. Haru whipped her head in the direction of the voice. It couldn't be! Yamamoto?!

There he was, jogging up the street with a hand in the air in greeting. Her feet carried her faster than her captors could grab her. She streaked down the sidewalk towards him. Yamamoto could save her! Then her grin of elation faded on her lips. Suddenly the picture of her parents at gunpoint flashed in her mind…she…she couldn't let that happen.

Yamamoto stopped jogging, puzzlement on his face. Why was Haru running at him with an anxious stricken face with three men behind her? Was she being chased? Was she in trouble? Damn! Why hadn't he brought his katana or any sort of weapon? His face turned serious and he planted his feet in case he had to fight barehanded. But he didn't have much time to react as Haru leaped high in the air at him, threw her legs around his waist and fiercely kissed him full on the lips.

WHAAAAT?! Takeshi's brain stalled from the sheer surprise but he managed to stay upright on his feet. Haru buried her face in his neck and hugged him hard, clenching the back of his jogging jacket in her fists. She felt herself being grabbed by the collar from behind and let go of her friend. She slid off his hips, and took a step backwards as her arm was yanked back in the iron grip of one of the yakuza thugs.

"Sorry Takeshi, I just wanted my first kiss to be with someone I knew." She said to him with a very sad smile. Yamamoto's jaw dropped. HUH? Then he got another shock as a gun barrel was pointed at his temple. A greasy man with a pony-tail covered him.

"Who is this kid?" The thin man growled in exasperation as he too pulled out his gun and aimed it at Yamamoto's chest.

"Relax boys. It looks like he's her boyfriend and she wanted a last kiss." Yuan huffed as she caught up in her high heels. She walked up to the tall boy and gave him a look over. "Girl, you are more of a little hussy than I thought, not only do you have good taste in underwear, you've also got good taste in men. Cute athletes are very desirable." She said admiringly over her shoulder to Haru and then turned back to Yamamoto.

"Don't take it personal kid, but you're going to have to share her for a while. Take her out for ice cream later or something…get the taste out of her mouth if you know what I mean." She laughed at her inside joke and turned back towards the still waiting car, dragging Haru by the arm.

"Don't ever do that again!" She dug her nails into Haru's skin.

"Haru! What's going on?!" Yamamoto demanded stepping forward but a gangster put a hand to his chest and cocked the pistol.

"Back away or I'll blow your head off.

"Im sorry Takeshi. I'll explain later." Haru called back weakly as she was ducked into the car.

"Who are you people?!" Yamamoto cried.

"Leave it alone boy. Just back away." The thin man sneered and poked Yamamoto hard in the chest.

"Look on the bright side. This is to your advantage…when we're done with your little girlfriend; she'll be WAY more experienced than before." He laughed harshly and jumped into the car as it peeled off.

* * *

Yamamoto stood stunned for only a moment before giving chase. But the car was too fast, and squealed around a corner. Seeing Haru's front door open, Takeshi bolted in to look. A battered man, whom he remembered from past math study sessions, was on the couch with his face in his hands and a woman sat beside him crying.

"Mr. &amp; Mrs. Miura what happened?" He demanded.

"You're one of Haru's friends…" Mr. Miura murmured staring at him blankly through puffy eyes.

"Who were those men? Where are they taking Haru?!" Yamamoto demanded. Silence filled the living room before each parent heaved a tearful sigh of defeat and they confessed their sins.

"They're with the Kosui yakuza. We owe them money. A LOT of money. We've tried to pay off those stupid debts but they got tired of waiting." Her father mumbled.

"And now they've taken Haru to pay it off." Her mother warbled with tears streaming down her cheeks.

"What do you mean, pay it off?" Yamamoto felt a prickle of dread.

"They'll force her into prostitution to pay off our balance." Was the miserable reply

"What!" Yamamoto exclaimed in horror. He grabbed Mr. Miura by the shirt. "You're her dad, why didn't you stop them!?"

"I couldn't do anything. I couldn't do anything." the poor man broke down in tears. "I've failed her as a father, I couldn't protect her." He sobbed.

"Its all our fault." His wife moaned. Yamamoto grit his teeth in anger and clenched his fists.

"Damn! Damn it. Why didn't she tell me?"

"She didn't know anything. She just found out about it when she came home and they found her. Oh, my poor daughter!" Mrs. Miura flopped over on the couch and covered her face.

As much as Yamamoto wanted to yell and scream at Haru's parents about how they had failed in their duties and how they should have done things differently, he knew that it wouldn't help.

"You have got to tell me where they are taking her!"

"Its no use, you wont be able to do anything."

"WHERE ARE THEY TAKING HER?!" Yamamoto shouted furiously and shook Mr. Miura by the collar.

"To their boss Kosui!" the man cringed, "They said they were taking her to his mansion."

"I've got to call Tsuna!" Takeshi whipped out his phone. "Wait! Damn it, they're all in Italy. The only one left in Japan is Hibari and I have no idea where he is."

_Calm down Takeshi, think! You've got to find her and save her_ Yamamoto thought furiously. _Its all up to me then._ Dashing out the door he dialed his phone.

"Hello! Reborn! Listen I know you're in Italy but it's an emergency. I need information on the Kosui yakuza here in Japan."

_Hang on Haru, I'm coming_ Yamamoto dashed through the streets just as the lamps began coming on in the impending darkness.

* * *

***Next chapter: Yamamoto has no back up and reborn has just given his first contract killing as the personal Hitman for Vongola, will he make it to Haru in time? Just who exactly is this Kosui of the Kosui Yakuza? Can Haru face her next ordeal with bravery? **


	3. Chapter 3

_***Can Haru face her ordeal bravely like a true future mafioso's wife? Can Yamamoto accept his first contract killing against a rival gang when he has no backup? Find out in this brutal chapter! Warning, adult themes. **_

* * *

_***Chapt. 3***_

_***A Random road in a filthy rich neighborhood***_

The black Mercedes wound its way through the perfectly manicured streets of the wealthy community. They had come to where the houses large, each one more opulent than the last. Eventually it stopped at the gated entrance of a mansion and was allowed entrance to the circular drive by the gate guard. There was quite a show of security; every corner of the house had a guard on watch. Haru gaped at the massive house. Who lived here? Yuan snapped her fingers to get her attention.

"Hey, pay attention. You're seeing Mr. Kosui tonight. THE Kosui, the big boss, he's the founding pillar of the Kosui yakuza cartel so you'd better make it worth his while for sparing your pathetic family's lives. Now remember what I told you. Let him lead and do whatever he wants without complaining. He's rough but he shouldn't hurt you too bad if you do what you're told." Yuan tried to smile kindly, but the hard lines around her jaw tightened which meant that she was trying to sugar coat it. This made Haru's anxiety level skyrocket. She had been sick to her stomach the entire trip but now her nerves had reached a frenzy pitch and she felt like vomiting.

"He has his hands extremely deep into the financial world's pockets and its your job to keep him happy if you know what's good for you. He has the ability to wipe the debt or make it so heavy even your grandchildren's grandkids wont be able to pay it back."

Haru nodded dejectedly.

"Smile, pretend you're with your super cute boyfriend back there. My advice is to let your mind and imagination drift. It won't be so bad once you get used to it."

And with that bit of optimism hanging in the air they trudged up the steps to the double oak paneled door. A maid ushered them into a very large parlor where they were seated on a white overstuffed couch with a side table full of crystal booze decanters and goblets. The place was immaculate, but the stank of greed dulled the senses and detracted from the dazzling decor.

It wasn't but a moment before two men strode onto the floor. One man was clearly a bodyguard complete with a curly ear bud lacing down the back of his neck. The other man was an intimidating mixture of muscle mixed with a massively swollen pot-belly. His fleshy neck and bulging jowls for a jawline showed a man past his prime who had indulged so much in the finer luxuries of life. He had ended up looking rather like a catfish. Authority permeated the air around him and the hard eyes and deep frown lines on his face showed every bit the brutal gangster and businessman he was. The Madam was given a customary hug and a peck on the cheek.

"Yuan my friend, how are you?" his voice sounded like he ate nails and gravel for breakfast.

"Business is booming as usual." She quipped merrily, "And how are you Mr. Kosui?"

"Fine, fine. Just put the squeeze on the manager of the Jakinza district. I'm up another cool ten grand!" he laughed unpleasantly.

With the formalities exchanged the powerful man sat down with a flop on the couch opposite and opened his arms wide. "So, who have you brought me this time?"

"This is Haru, she's 14 and is a virgin. You will actually be her first client." Haru was so tense that she accidently started to make a noise of correction…she was actually sixteen, but then stopped when a sharp look came her way.

"Well now, let me take a good look. Stand up girl." He rubbed his chin and eyed Haru like he would a fish for its freshness at the local supermarket. Yuan pinched her sharply on the thigh so the frightened girl attempted a smile. The man whistled long and slow, he grinned and slapped his knee.

"Yuan, you've outdone yourself this time. She's like a mixture of that Canadian punk-rock singer chick, I forget her name, Avril something, and a young model I screwed when I was at fashion week in Paris last year. A virgin you say? Well, even if she isn't, tomorrow morning she's gonna be sore as hell like one, hah-hah! Little girl, I may have to keep you with me for more than one night." He laughed crassly and he pulled out a thick wad of cash from his pocket and pulled out several bills and handed them to the handler. "Here's a tip Yuan, keep the change." Yuan snatched them greedily.

"Thank you Mr. Kosui, you are too generous. Please enjoy yourself." She bowed and then furiously counted the bills as she walked towards the door, calling out over her shoulder. "Call me whenever you are done with her and I'll pick her up and take her to the club." Kosui nodded and waved her out the door.

* * *

_***On the highway***_

"Which way now Reborn?!" Yamamoto cried out against the wind. He was flying at top speed down the roads on his motorcycle, coattail flapping and knuckles white against the throttle. His katana was strapped to his back. Reborn was navigating him through the helmet receiver radio.

"_Turn right off the pike and go east."_ Reborn had quickly found the address for Kosui's mansion and was navigating him by satellite positioning from the command center in Italy. Yamamoto pushed the throttle more. Adrenaline poured through his system. He was absolutely furious and scared to death that he wouldn't make it in time. He could NOT let any harm come to a member of his famiglia; especially not one of the girls.

Haru's words "_I just wanted my first kiss to be with someone I knew" _and the memory of her lips on his still burned. The thought of her being forced to satisfy the depraved desires of hostile men made his blood boil. He understood that speed was of the essence. He HAD to find her quickly. Reborn had advised against informing Tsuna for the moment because he was deep in conference with the Italian family heads at the moment and there was not a single thing they could do from thousands of miles away. The baby assassin had told Takeshi outright to do two things…find Haru and kill Kosui.

It was time for Yamamoto to take his first official killing contract and display his skills as the Vongola family's hitman. Personally Yamamoto was completely fine with that, and at the same time he firmly established a new rule deep into his psyche…anyone who would intentionally harm the Vongola women NEEDED killing.

* * *

_***At the Mansion***_

Haru set her mouth in a hard line as Kosui escorted her down the marble hallway with a meaty hand on the small of her back. He reached down and gripped her butt, making her stiffen as he chuckled. This was going to happen whether she wanted it to or not so she had better mentally prepare herself.

She really, really hadn't wanted her first sexual experience to be with a stranger and especially not with a fat, ugly old man with sausage fingers. She had always envisioned tender caresses and blushing words with someone young, strong, and loving.

To keep herself from throwing up into the closest potted plant, she kept the image of the look on her parent's faces with that gun being held to their heads in her mind. She HAD to do this.

Mr. Kosui draped a heavy arm around her shoulder and led her up a plush carpet stairwell to the master bedroom.

"Don't be so tense girly, Im gonna show you what its like to be with a real man and not the little dicks you hang out with at school." He chuckled at her unease. He really was pleased with the look of this one- she was tiny, slender and absolutely adorable. Barely budded into womanhood just how he liked them.

Haru bit her lip and clenched her fists as she was ushered into the biggest bedroom she had ever seen. A flat screen TV flickered on the wall above a fireplace with couches and chairs around it. The far wall had a large balcony with sliding glass doors decorated in hanging ivy. The night outside was getting blacker as the sun had now completely set. Haru's eyes looked warily at the massive four-poster bed on her right...the scene of her rapidly approaching ordeal. Kosui walked to a table and poured himself a glass of whisky.

"You can leave now Aito." He said aloud without so much as a look back at the body guard. The door clicked and latched. Kosui turned around, sipped his booze, and stared at her body with obvious lust. Haru stood awkwardly in the middle of the room and squirmed under that intense stare. Her skin crawled and she wanted to sink and disappear into the carpet. She determined in her mind that she wouldn't show weakness and give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry.

"I am not a gentle man so if you ARE a virgin, you had better prepare yourself." His eyes narrowed and he loosened his shirt to throw it on the floor while downing the rest of his whisky. He had the type of potbelly that was so large and firm that you could have set a drink glass on it and it would have stayed upright like sitting on a shelf. His massive shoulders had once been firm and strong but now they sloped and the hair on his chest had become patchy and gnarled.

He reached out and pushed a strand of hair from her forehead.

"You're really hot to still be in junior high…I'll keep my eye on you in the future." He stepped closer and she stepped back. He kept advancing and she kept retreating as they made a circle around the room until her back hit the cool glass of the sliding doors that led to the balcony.

"Scared?" he licked his lips.

Damn right she was scared. He grabbed her shoulders and forced his lips to hers and she started to struggle as his massive belly squished her slender frame against the glass. His alcohol breath made it hard for her to breath. He pulled back with a hateful look and smacked her across the face. Haru gasped and felt her cheek, this was the second time she had been hit today in that same spot.

" Struggle away. I like it even better. You young sluts today just don't know how to take the pain like the old ones did. Scream as loud as you want but no one's gonna come for you." He laughed. He pinched her hard on the chest making her yelp. Revulsion and misery swept through Haru's body and the tears that had been threatening to come suddenly fell down her face.

_So much for not letting him have the satisfaction of seeing me cry. _She thought. She had tried desperately to be strong, but now that the moment of truth was here all she could do was whimper. _How embarrassing, how could I have ever called myself a future Mafioso's wife_. _Who will want me after this?_

Kosui whipped her around and smashed her face against the glass. He held her there with one hand and ripped the vest from off her shoulders and yanked off the tie. He bent over her and squished her harder against the glass with his belly and started to kiss her neck and shoulder, she yelped as he bit into her flesh hard enough to draw blood. Her first hickey. He laughed and fiddled with the button on her hip that held up her skirt. She closed her eyes and grit her teeth as she felt his hands run across her stomach, one reached up under her shirt to cup her breast.

* * *

_***On the Street***_

Yamamoto parked his motorcycle around a corner and crept on foot towards the massive mansion that Reborn had directed him to. High walls surrounded it and several guards with semiautomatic rifles slung on their shoulders were milling about. A handler with a snapping German shepherd stood at the gated entrance. His sharp eyes could see a few more men with waist pistols wandering around inside near the house. What a fortress! This Kosui must be very powerful indeed to have this much standing security.

"I'm here Reborn, what now?"

"_Scout the perimeter, try to find a way in and kill anyone that spots you."_ Reborn said over the cell phone.

"Reborn, there is a LOT of guards. Any tips for this kind of infiltration?"

"_Start out quietly with silent throat slits as long as you can. I'm going to try and send you some backup from Dino but don't count on them arriving for a few hours at least. They're far away and it'll take time. Time that Haru doesn't have. You're on your own so trust your instincts and the training I gave you." _

"Got it boss. I'll do my best." Yamamoto nodded.

. _"Yamamoto, take this more seriously than any opponent you have ever faced. You MUST kill Kosui and anyone who gets in your way. Be brutally efficient. This is a hard first contract, but remember why you are here. They WILL rape her and possibly kill her. You are the Vongola family's personal hit man and it's your job to protect our women. Now hang up the phone and get to work."_ Reborn spoke calmly and businesslike which gave gravity to his words.

***click*** the phone went dead. Yamamoto jogged across the street and walked along the wall towards the back of the mansion looking for a way in. He needed to find a dark, weakly guarded area. Seeing a likely spot on the wall that had a few handholds Takeshi climbed and leaped over perimeter and crouched in the bush below. Suddenly movement caught his eye from one of the upper story windows. His eyes widened in shock and alarm. Haru's distressed face was seen smashed to the glass and she was crying and gritting her teeth. A man was towering behind her and fondling her. Yamamoto's

jaw grit down and his teeth clenched until he could feel them crack. His fist clenched until the veins stood high. The man with Haru turned her around to face him, pulled her arms up and yanked her shirt off above her head before pinning her shoulders and slapping her across the face and shouting at her. Yamamoto Takeshi was filled with a type of rage he had never felt before-the deadly rage of a man against another man over a stolen and mistreated woman.

* * *

Haru had to think of something else. ANYTHING else except what was happening to her body. She looked over her shoulder and out the glass door and searched frantically for something to focus on. She could see all the way out to the main road. A high wall separated it from the property but she could see a street lamp illuminating a large circle of sidewalk. She focused on the glowing light and the moths fluttering around it. She desperately wanted to cry out for help, for someone to save her, but there was no one to hear. This wasn't how things were supposed to happen.

Tsuna…she wished Tsuna was here.…_Tsuna_…_or Yamamoto_…_Yamamato_? Her eyes widened. Movement in the bushes below caught her attention. The figure of a tall, athletic young man standing in the yard materialized. He had a stricken look of alarm on his face as he looked straight at her.

"Takeshi!" she suddenly cried without thinking.

"Huh? Who's that?" Mr. Kosui looked out and saw the spiky haired boy. His eyes narrowed. "Is that your boyfriend?" The gangster slid open the door to the balcony and shoved Haru out against the railing.

"Hey kid! How did you get in?" Kosui yelled.

"Takeshi what are you doing here?!" Haru cried as she gripped the railing.

_So much for being stealthy._ Yamamoto mentally kicked himself as he stepped out of the bushes and glared up at the catfish.

"You made a grave mistake Kosui! You have a lot of nerve kidnapping a woman of Vongola!" "Vongola? Whats that? Sounds like a type of salad." Kosui laughed.

"Did you come to watch me fuck your girl's brains out? I always welcome an audience."

"Let her go!" Yamamoto yelled.

"Or what? You gonna call your mommy on me? Or maybe the cops? Well guess what, I OWN the cops. You got balls coming here kid but Im the head of the Kosui Yakuza and I don't take threats from hairless brats who still drink milk."

Yamamoto pulled his katana out from its sheath on his back. The Blade glistened in the pale light from the distant street lamps. He pointed it menacingly up at Kosui.

"Let her go or I swear I will stick you like a pig. I am the assassin for the 10th head of Vongola and you have insulted and assaulted one of our women. That is unforgivable." Takeshi shouted fearlessly. Haru felt a glimmer of hope for the first time and she let out a small gasp of a smile which Kosui didn't miss. He yanked Haru's ponytail to pull her head back, moved one of her bra straps down off her shoulder and kissed her on the neck before mockingly hissing in her ear.

"Now see what you did. She certainly liked that little speech. Just look at your boy down there girl, Look at your knight in shining armor, he came to save you. Too bad I have to kill him." Then he called down to Takeshi.

" Big words and a big sword for such a tiny man. Lets have some fun boy. Here's what I think of your threat." Haru cried out as thick fingers dived into the front of her skirt and down into her panties, roughly gripping that which should be handled gently and lovingly.

"STOP!" Yamamoto shouted.

"Come on up kid and we'll see who does the sticking tonight!" Kosui then grappled a struggling Haru back into the room.

"No! Takeshi! Help me! Get me out of here!" Haru panicked as the sliding door crashed shut.

"Aito! We have an intruder!" Kosui yelled and the door burst open as the bodyguard sprang in.

"There's a kid in the yard. Bring him to me and I want him alive!" Aito nodded and ran off down the hall speaking rapidly into his earpiece. "And as for you." Kosui turned his attention to the trembling girl in his grip. "we're going to wait patiently till your boy gets here and then you are going to watch as I cut his balls off and feed them to him." He grinned with glee. Staring up into this monster's eyes, Haru suddenly found backbone and spit in his face. Kosui immediately punched her in the face.

"You'll never catch him. He's the Rain Guardian." She growled, wiping her cheek.

"Rain guardian? Is that from a video game?" Kosui wiped off his face.

"You're going to be sorry you ever messed with him. Takeshi is the personal hit man for the 10th boss of Vongola and he is going to carve you into pieces." She spat the words with a fierceness she didn't know was in her. Takeshi was going to save her and this whole nightmare would end. Then her eyes saw sparks and her lip split wide open as she took another heavy punch to the jaw.

* * *

***Will Yamamoto make it past the guards? What will happen to our pair if Kosui gets the upper hand? Next chapter is brutal so do not read if you are young and less than 16 years of age. Please respect M rating. **


	4. Chapter 4

_***Yamamoto receives his scar. Please, please respect M rating and do not read if less than 16 or cannot handle adult themes, some language, and depictions of violence. **_

* * *

_***Chapt. 4***_

_***Side of Kosui's mansion***_

Yamamoto bolted down the side of the house looking for a doorway to lead him inside. Two henchmen rounded the corner and dashed towards him brandishing their pistols. The rain guardian continued his course, whipped his sword around and both thugs went down in a spray of arterial blood against the wall. They had underestimated his speed.

Surprisingly he didn't feel any horror at taking these men's lives. He had expected his first real kills to make him feel remorse or queasy but he felt nothing. Another guard with a dog came up and released the bridle. Yamamoto unleashed his blue spirit rain dog who flew into the German Shepherd making the canine yelp and dash away in fear. Then Yamamoto skewered the handler through the chest. Again, he felt nothing. It was almost…natural. It was just like Reborn had said a long time ago. Yamamoto had in-born abilities as a hit man. A bullet report reached his ear just as a bullet whizz-banged past him and several men could be heard huffing towards him. In the darkness Yamamoto dodged behind a tree, took stock of his surroundings and quickly deduced the best route.

Dodging from tree to bush to a standing Greek statue, he flanked the three guards till he came behind the last one and cut him down with a slash to the back. Then using the base of the statue as a stepping stone he leaped into the air and cracked through the skull of the second thug. The third man unleashed a blast of fire with his submachine rifle but Yamamoto jumped to the side to land on all fours, dodged again with a quick body reflex and threw a small knife through the air to imbed into the man's forehead. Another trick Reborn had taught him. He had several throwing knives stashed in a case strapped to the small of his back. Now the front doorway was free and he darted through it to seek the stairs. His sneakers squeaked on the floors.

"Haru!" He yelled, his voice echoing, as he found the stairs that led to a large landing at the top. Sprinting up he turned in circles to decide which way to go. "Haru where are you!"

A bullet smashed into the wall behind him and two men sprinted up the stairs after him. Diving to hide behind the banister Yamamoto crashed into a side table and it fell on top of him. A metal tray with goblets broke on the floor. Takeshi stabbed the tip his sword into the floor so that it stuck upright and with the other hand grabbed a fistful of the broken glass, not caring that it cut his palms. He fumbled to grab a hold of the tray. As the two guards reached the top of the stairs and trained their pistols Yamamoto yelled.

"Don't shoot! I give up. See I'm unarmed!" he pointed back at his sword in the ground. The guards lowered their weapons and angrily advanced on him.

"Get on the ground now! On your knees." Yamamoto complied though he still held the tray and clenched his fist in the other to hide the glass.

"I would like nothing better than to put a bullet in your brain right now, but the boss would want that privilege. I hope he slices you up bit by bit real slow. Now put your hands behind your back." The first guard grumbled as he went to grab Yamamoto's wrist. Unfortunately the guy wasn't expecting an eyeful of glass that sent splinters deep into his retinas. Takeshi grabbed him and used him as a human shield as the other guard opened fire. Throwing the metal tray with baseball accuracy the rain guardian hit the threat in the hand, tripping up his pistol just long enough for Takeshi to grab the sword behind him and run it through the hapless lackey's gut. Then he used the discarded pistol to shoot one last guard who picked that unfortunate moment to come around the corner. Nine, Yamamoto had just killed nine men in cold blood and he didn't care.

A cry of pain down the hallway snatched his ear. _Haru!_ Darting to his left he sprinted faster than he had ever sprinted before. Adrenalin surged. He had no idea what he would do when he got there but he knew he had to get there fast. And that was his mistake.

In his inexperience, Yamamoto had let his emotion surge to such a height that his feet got ahead of his head and he wasn't expecting to be jack-knifed across the throat from a side doorway.

Aito stepped out of the opening and shook out his shoulder. He had thrown a savage haymaker across Yamamoto's neck, knocking him clean off his feet on onto his back so hard that it knocked the wind out of him. Aito followed it up with a brutal gut punch to the diaphragm and then a few bone crunching smashes to the teen's face. Yamamoto lay there stunned and trying to breath.

"You're good at killing boy, but not THAT good. You just took out the trash. I, however, will not go easy on you." Aito said dryly as he shook out his knuckles. "The boss wants to see you."

* * *

***Inside the bedroom***

Haru waited as she listened to the shooting and shouting outside. She fingered her split lip and wiped away the blood that had dribbled on her chin. Kosui had told her to sit on the couch while he arranged the furniture. He had pushed the coffee table to the side of the room, turned a big overstuffed chair around by the fireplace and put a straight backed chair in the middle of the room in front of it. Now he sat with his huge stomach protruding halfway across his lap, twiddling a pair of handcuffs around with one finger and humming a happy little tune to himself. His confidence and contentment unnerved her. Shouldn't he be at least a little bit nervous about a swordsman coming to kill him?

The door crashed open, startling her, but it wasn't the grand entrance of a conquering hero that greeted her eyes. Aito threw a stunned and bleeding Yamamoto onto the floor and then shut the door.

"Takeshi!" Haru gasped and covered her mouth with her hands.

"Ah! You've finally arrived. I've been waiting forever little knight." Kosui purred.

"He took out almost every guard in the house." Aito said testily.

"Well then, you should have hired better ones." The boss sneered.

Aito handed Yamamoto's katana to the fat man who held it up in the air and whistled in admiration.

"Wow…that's sharp toy for a kid." He pointed the tip of at the boy's head. "Didn't your mother tell you not to run with sharp objects. You could have gotten hurt." Takeshi staggered to his knees and hugged his abdomen, coughed, and then drooled bloody spittle onto the floor. Kosui stood up and angrily kicked him in the face.

"Don't drool on the carpet, its bad manners."

"Don't hurt him!" Haru blurted and dashed to Yamamoto's side to try to shield him.

"Back off chick, the men are talking." A heavy boot shoved her aside.

"Haru, get away." Takeshi gasped between difficult breaths. The air sure was taking its sweet time returning to his lungs. Kosui ignored Haru and grabbed Takeshi by the hair and hauled him up to sit in the straight chair where Aito quickly cuffed his hands behind him.

Lifting another decanter of whisky from the table, the yakuza boss took a long swig before pouring the rest of it onto Yamamoto's head drenching him. Yamamoto coughed some more and then Kosui smacked him gently on the side of the cheek a few times.

"Wake up kid. You can't sleep yet, we've got too many things to do." Yamamoto opened his eyes and glared hotly at the boss.

"Ah, there you are. Nice eyes, I like 'em. Welcome to my private bedroom. Not many men get to see this place. I usually reserve it for my female guests only, but in your case, I can make an exception." Kosui smiled pleasantly. Throwing his bulk back into the overstuffed chair with a huff he put a hand to his chin.

"Now tell me kid, how is it that you, a teenager, could have killed all of my highly trained and heavily armed guards with just a sword?"

"You obviously didn't pay them enough." Yamamoto grinned with bloody teeth. "And they weren't THAT heavily armed." Kosui laughed.

"He's a funny kid this one. I like him. I'd hire him if I didn't have to kill him." He leaned in close. "Who are you exactly? Yakuza? Vigilante? Did the Jikinza group send you?"

"I told you in the yard, Im the rain guardian of Vongola." Yamamoto slid down in the chair to loosen out his arms. The circulation was starting to cut off as the metal cuffs bit into his wrists.

"Vongola? Vongola…Vongola…Oh yeah, I think I've heard of them. They're an Italian mafia. What did you do, Google the name or something before you came? They don't exist outside of Italy, much less Japan you moron. I would know because I know everyone in the Asian underworld. Seriously, someone of your caliber has got to be working for someone I know in this town. I want to know exactly who you work for and Im gonna get it out of you one way or the other."

Kosui had so far neglected Haru but now he padded heavily over, grabbed her by the nape of the neck and shoved the squirming girl onto her knees in front of Yamamoto's chair. He ripped the rubber band out of her ponytail to let her hair fall free to her shoulders. Yamamoto cursed himself because even under these tragic circumstances his male brain couldn't help but appreciate the view because Haru was barefoot and shirtless. All she had on was her bra and school skirt barely skimming mid-thigh and they worked hard on the imagination. Since when had she grown those lovely flaring hips, pronounced collarbones and long, lean limbs?

"You like the view don't ya boy, she's a beauty so hot you'll piss yourself. In a year or two she'll have Victoria's Secret knocking at her door just begging for a photo op and a hand job. A lot of wars have been fought over beautifully women, but let me ask you this, is this particular tight little ass really worth all this effort and bloodshed?" The boss ran a few fingers through her hair. Haru cringed.

"Don't touch her you jackass!" Takeshi bridled.

"Oh im gonna do more than touch her boy. For you see, it's obvious that you're the pistol she's riding hot on at the moment, and there is nothing I like better than watching men wilt and their pride die knowing that I have overpowered them and taken their women."

Yamamoto grit his teeth and a sickening dread flooded his chest.

"All this can be avoided if you'll tell me who you work for."

"I told you, I am the rain guardian for the Vongola mafia. I came to save Haru."

"And I'm telling you you're lying and are trying to make a fool of me!"

Aito handed his boss a long thin stick.

"Thank you Aito, you always anticipate what I need. Now Yamamoto-kun, since you are so uncooperative, I want you to look at this skin here." He ran a hand across Haru's shoulders. She was still on her knees between yamamoto's chair and Kosui stood behind her gripping her hair. She cringed at his touch and looked at Takeshi with obvious fear.

"So smooth, so soft. This is a riding crop girl. Ever seen one? They're used to whip horses when they wont obey and your boyfriend is not obeying right now so you gotta pay." Kosui's face sneered and gripped her arm tightly and began to smash her across the back with the reed causing her to buck and pull away as the crop bit into exposed skin. It really hurt!

. Now TELL me, who is he!? Who does this punk work for?!" Perspiration broke out on his lip as he beat her. Haru repeated over and over as tried to jerk her arm free, "HE'S MAFIOSO!" Long rows of welts appeared and began to bleed down her back.

"Vongola doesn't exist outside of Italy! I would know if there was a Japanese branch. I'm sick of this. I know exactly how to deal with you two." Then he turned his deadly gaze towards Yamamoto.

"Boy, you play with bull and you sometimes get the horns." He grabbed the discarded takana from the couch. "Aito, hold his face still."

"W-What are you doing?" Yamamoto felt coldness creep up his spine. Until this moment he had not felt any lack of faith that they would get out of this somehow like they always did.

This was NOT how he had imagined this going at all. He was a mafia hitman, a trained guardian with control over the power of Rain. He was Vongola! He had overcome countless obstacles and opponents. He had been quite proud of his skills but now he realized that all of that counted for nothing when he couldn't even move an inch to fight lowlife scum like this. Aito grabbed his head in a headlock to keep is still. He squirmed in the chair, tried to kick at Kosui as the man advanced with his sword.

"STOP! Don't kill him! Please don't kill him!" Haru pleaded as she rushed at the boss's broad back. She was knocked down with a swift kick to the stomach.

"Stay down bitch. Im not gonna kill him yet. But he needs a present from the Kosui Yakuza so the so called "Vongola" boss will get the message when they find your bodies." Then he proceeded to carve a deep slit down the side of Yamamoto's chin. Takeshi grit in pain and blood poured down the side of his neck and soaked the front of his shirt.

"Shall I give you a matching one on the other side?" Aito turned Takeshi's head forcefully to the other side as the hyperventilating boy stared up at him wild eyed. Kosui reached to administer it when Haru recovered enough to jump on his back, grip his hair in her nails and bite him on the ear. Kosui yelped, dropped the Katana and ripped the girl off his back. She took a chunk of his ear with her and spit it out on the floor. Kosui a hand to his ear, looked at the blood on his fingers and then laughed his head off.

"Hahahaha! That surprised me you bitch! Yamamoto that is quite the little ball-breaker you got there. If you are indeed Mafioso you chose well cause she's definitely mob-wife material. Where on earth did that ferocity come from? You might be cute on the outside, but who knew you were such a wildcat!" Kosui reached down and pulled Haru to her feet.

"Oh well, an eye for an eye." He said blithely and then he smashed her across the face with the riding crop so hard she was stunned. Yamamoto cried out as if he'd been the one hit and he pulled against his chair. The skin on Haru's face raised an excoriated welt horizontally across the bridge of her nose, under her eye and almost to her ear.

"Lets skip all this foreplay and go straight to the main course shall we." Kosui's gleeful face made Haru's heart beat hard in her chest as he removed his belt from around his ample waist and grabbed her wrists in his iron grip and wrapped them tightly in the thick leather.

"Please don't do this." She tried one more time in a thin plaintive voice. The air around him changed to icy indifference.

"Shut up. Mafia women should know that this is their lot in life." Then Kosui roughly broke the clasp on the side of her skirt and unzipped the zipper. It dropped to the floor and she was left in only her underwear.

"Blood red panties…a fitting match for what's about to happen to you." He then turned her to face Yamamoto.

"Oh Yamamoto, the things you're gonna watch tonight. You wont have to pay for this particular porno, it's on the house. Aito make sure he doesn't close his eyes. Now, on your knees Vongola bitch." Haru looked at Takeshi miserably as the tears rolled down her cheeks. Their eyes connected and instantly they both knew they were completely within this man's grasp.

"NOW. On your knees you whore!" Kosui was getting angry at how long this was taking. He shoved her to her knees.

"Unzip me." He grabbed her belt-strapped wrists and put the fingers on his waistband. The girl's eyes widened.

"No." Haru shook her head.

"Aito, slit his throat." Kosui ordered. Aito slipped the katana under Yamamoto's neck and adjusted his grip. Yamamoto let out a squelched cry.

"I'll do it! I'll do it!" Haru fumbled with the button and then the zipper.

Stomach turning nausea overwhelmed Haru and she hesitated. Every fiber of her being screamed at her to not do what she was about to do. Kosui smacked her on the side of the head and grabbed her hair roughly around the ear.

"Stick that little pink tongue out. That all you gotta do. Honestly, a girl your age not knowing how to blow a guy off? It's depressing!" and with that Haru forced herself to do as he wanted. She couldn't breathe and her taste buds rebelled but she did it anyway.

Yamamoto cringed in torment, he tried looking anywhere other than what was happening in front of him. He saw Haru's tears and felt tears well up in his own eyes and trickle down his face. He felt Haru's shame reach across to overwhelm him. He was furious, helpless, and appalled that he couldn't stop what was happening to her. She was saving his life by allowing herself to be degraded. He tried desperately to move and pull against his handcuffs but Aito tightened the edge of his katana against his neck, paper-cutting the skin and drawing beads of blood.

"Keep watching or I promise I'll slaughter you like a hog on the spot." The bodyguard's evil voice whispered into his ear. Haru began to choke, she coughed violently as she spit on the floor. The poorly tied belt around her wrists loosened and she pulled her hands apart so she could grasp her throat.  
"Ahhhhh...that felt so good." Kosui sighed in satisfaction. He smiled over at Takeshi.

"Yamamoto you look left out. You wanna join?" Then the boss pulled the wretched girl over and shoved her onto the boy's lap.

"Wrap your legs around your boyfriend for the last time girl. Make him good and stiff. Neither of you are going to survive the night so give him a few good kisses goodbye and make them count."

Haru's shoulders stiffened, She spread her legs wider and adjusted to sit on Yamamoto's hips facing him. She leaned forward, staring down at the spreading blood stain on his shirt from his hemorrhaging chin.

The fight had gone out of her as she lifted her hands to hold his face gingerly between her fingers and looked at him. Already, dark shadows were forming behind her eyes making them dull and her breathing was ragged through the tear stains. Yamamoto couldn't say what Haru's dreams had been, but he had always imagined that his first few kisses would be with a pretty girl on her doorstep after he had taken her home from a date and It would be soft and full of blushing and nervous sweating. Maybe it might have even been with Haru herself, he'd never know now. He'd be lying if he said that the thought hadn't crossed his mind of what it would be like to kiss her in days past.

Certainly neither of them had imagined a situation that left one of them cuffed to a chair bleeding to death, with the other beaten and forced to perform a lap dance by a monstrous yakuza boss.

"Haru, you don't have to." Takeshi whispered. She didn't respond, if anything her shoulders drooped even more sadly.

Then she kissed him long and slow, but it was far from pleasant for either of them. It tasted like blood and sourness and her split lip felt raw against the edge of his split chin. The old phrase _Kiss it and make it all better_ popped into Takeshi's mind. He couldn't help it; the damned hormones were starting to kick in even in that horrible situation. A striking girl clad only in underwear was sitting on his lap kissing him tenderly and, even though it was against all his will. _Get ahold of yourself Takeshi! You cant let her think that you're the same type of man as these ogres who get excited at her humiliation. Go down damnit, go down. I won't let my body betray her too. _

Unfortunately Haru wasn't cooperating with his internal struggle because she shifted on his lap and bucked her hips a bit, making things much worse for the guy. She ran a hand down his chest and to his waist as she nipped at his lips. She stuck her fingers across his pockets. _What the heck was she doing? _Takeshi's mind was trying to make sense of these clearly deliberate actions on Haru's part. These weren't the actions of a scared girl forced to do these things. She should be trembling more but instead she seemed to be looking back to see if Kosui was watching. Haru then hugged him closer and snaked a hand under his shirt to the small of his back.

"There you go girl, give him a proper farewell." Kosui laughed lewdly.

Then Haru found what she was looking for. Yamamoto still had a throwing knife hidden in the holster strapped across his waist under the shirt. Aito had not properly patted him down for secondary weapons before bringing him into the room. By keeping the two men occupied with their attentions on her kissing, she tugged the knife free with the one hand. Suddenly she bucked her weight very hard against Yamamoto's increasingly tight pants and let out a small squeak so that Aito and Kosui would be distracted as she transferred the knife around into Takeshi's hand. He gripped it tightly against the flat of his wrist. He had been unable to reach the knife through the back of the chair no matter how many times he had contorted his wrists and fingers, but now Haru's quick thinking had given them a chance. A grim determination came over him and his mind calmed. They could still get out of this, but he would only get one shot so he had better not blow it.

* * *

***I TOLD you it was brutal. Now for some payback. Check out the revenge that Yamamoto lays down on these two monsters in the next chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Yamamoto gets his revenge but will he be able to get free in time to spare Haru futher humilation?**_

* * *

_***Chapt. 5***_

_***Cuffed to the chair and plotting the next move***_

Having transferred the knife into Yamamoto's hand, Haru leaned back on his lap, put her hands around his neck so her arms rested on his shoulders. Takeshi leaned his head forward and Haru leaned her head against his forehead. She lifted her eyes to meet his and gave him a tiny trusting smile. It conveyed an unspoken belief, _I've done all I can, you have to save us now. _Yamamoto's heart beat a little bit slower and courage began to steady his spine. _A last kiss goodbye_. They both knew the moment of life or death was minutes away.

"Awwww….aint that sweet Aito. How tender! Ok boy, you've had your turn and now Im geared up and ready for mine." Kosui wrenched Haru off of Yamamoto's lap.

"I'll be damned, she got pretty wet just from that. What a slut. Aito give me the kid's Katana. This has a pretty long hilt. Yamamoto-kun, since you're a swordsman, have you ever thought of fucking her with the handle of this?" Haru turned pale and the anxious look returned to her face. Kosui flicked the sword around and raised it to run the sharp edge lightly along Haru's shoulder until it caught under the strap of her bra.

Haru covered her chest with her arms

"Nuh-uh…none of that shyness crap. Unless you want a matching facial scar like his." He gestured towards Yamamoto who was growling desperately through clenched teeth. Haru let her arms down on full display. Oh she was perfect.

"Like a couple of peaches as the cliché goes." Kosui licked his lips.

" I cant wait anymore, to the bed Vongola whore!" He hauled her kicking to the king sized four poster bed at the end of the room. He set the katana against the night stand before throwing her on top of the mattress and climbing on top of her.

"Hang on Haru! Kick him, bite him, anything! I'm coming!" Yamamoto cried. Aito grabbed him by the shoulders and firmly held him down in the chair. Yamamoto thrashed side to side and managed to knock himself and the chair to the ground. Kicking at the chair legs he managed to maneuver it down enough to slip his arms over the back of it. Aito kicked him and the boy rolled over on his back, cuffed arms pinned behind him. Aito leveled his massive semi-automatic pistol at yamamoto's head and pulled the trigger. The bullet ricochet next to the teen's cheek and Yamamoto stopped struggling.

"You try that again and I wont miss next time." Aito growled. Strangled shrieks continued to erupt from Haru's throat across the room.

"I wont do it! I don't care anymore! Just kill me! Just get it over with and kill us!" Kosui laughed. He pinned Haru's shoulders down and forcefully kissed her. She bit his lip.

"Ouch! You bit me again you bitch!' and then he gripped her by the neck and strangled her as he shoved her across the covers to the head of the bed. Haru scratched at his arm and kicked futilely. He may have outweighed her by at least 200lbs but she was not going to make this easy for him. He just laughed and smacked her across the mouth forcing the split lip even wider.

"Hey Aito! Bring the boyfriend over here. I want him to see every moment of this." Kosui yelled over his shoulder. Aito grabbed Takeshi under the elbow and lugged him up, half-carrying him across the room to sit on the floor beside the bed against the wall. Kosui winked at him and then snatched the waistband of Haru's panties in his fist and tugged them down.

"Stop it!" Haru's heartbroken sobs broke. She fought him tooth and nail but she was no match for a full grown man.

Kosui threw the panties towards Yamamoto who was swearing and spit-yelling, his face red with rage.

"I'll kill you! I'll gut you like a pig! You're going to die Kosui I swear it! I'm going to kill you!" He needed an opening, just one small opening to break free and use his knife. Kosui grinned cockily at him and jerked Haru's knees apart and positioned himself. Haru let loose an ear piercing scream as she felt the tip begin to touch her. She covered her face with her arms and a strangled cry emanated through her teeth in anticipation of what was to come. Aito took a step forward, absorbed in what was happening and for a split second took his grip off his prisoner.

It was the moment Takeshi had been waiting for. He kicked Aito's leg out from under him causing the man to fall heavily. The rain guardian jumped straight in the air, tucked his legs to his chest and swung his arms under him so they were now cuffed in front of him rather than in back. Taking a flying leap onto Aito, he bashed the knife into the gangster's neck and left it there as the man gurgled in his own blood. Still kneeling on the bed, Kosui turned to look at Yamamoto in surprise. Before the boss could react, Takeshi dived for his Katana on the nightstand and delivered his promise of sticking the fat man like a pig. The sword went so deep into Kosui's belly that fat burbled over the hilt. Kosui's face was a mask of pure disbelief, which turned to purple rage and then to fear. He leaned backwards, a deep crimson pool forming underneath him and soaking into the mattress. Haru was breathing hard, hardly able to comprehend what had just happened. Warm, sticky blood gushed over her legs from the fat man's stomach and she squirmed desperately out of from under him to scramble off the bed.

"Haru are you ok?! Did I make it in time?! Did he get you? I couldn't tell!" Yamamoto hugged her tightly. Haru burst into fresh tears as she realized she'd been spared.

"No, I felt it, but it didn't go in! He didn't get me." She sobbed into his chest. Relief surged through their systems leaving them suddenly drained, exhausted, excited, and afraid all at the same time. They sank to the floor and leaned against the side of the bed where both of them sobbed in intense emotional release.

"They're dead. I got them, they can't hurt you ever again." Yamamoto took deep shaky breaths. Aito oozed puddles of blood all over the floor beside them and Kosui twitched and flopped on the bed above in his death gurgles. After a few moments they calmed down enough to realize that Haru was still partially naked. She limped over to her skirt and put it on, but was unable to locate her shirt.

"Here, uncuff me and you can have mine." Yamamoto offered. Haru rummaged through Aito's pockets till she found the ring of keys and set Yamamoto's hands free. He rubbed his bruised and bleeding wrists and took off his big bloody jogging shirt and pulled it over her shoulders. Haru gave him another big hug. He suddenly felt very heavy. He had lost a LOT of blood from the massive slice in his face and he was suddenly feeling woozy now that the adrenalin had gone. He sat down hard on the ground.

"Takeshi what's wrong!?" Haru asked in a hoarse voice.

"I don't feel so good. Can you get my katana? I feel really weak and my head hurts. I need to sit here for another minute." Takeshi held his head in his hands and attempted a smile. The girl nodded and looked up at the bed behind them. She clambered up and stood over Kosui's body. Grippping the hilt of the sword she pulled the dribbling blade out and stared grimly at the body. Spotting his open pants, she gripped the sword sideways and then lopped it off.

"My shame has been repaid you bastard. I hope you rot in hell." She spit on the corpse. This was a very out of character move for Haru but she didn't care. She didn't want to be kind and weak at the moment. She turned to find Yamamoto watching her. He nodded approvingly and she nodded back. This was something they both understood and it didn't need explaining.

"Lets get out of here before someone comes." Yamamoto said taking back the katana. Haru put an arm around his waist and he leaned on her as they limped down the hallway.

Suddenly a phone rang. The noise made them both jump and then Yamamoto realized that it was his pocket that was making the noise and pulled out a cell phone. It was Reborn.

"Yamamoto. Are you ok? What's going on?" Reborn's voice called.

"I got her Reborn, but we've been through something terrible. Ive lost a lot of blood and Haru's really beat up. Im so dizzy I don't think I can keep my motorcycle up. We need to get to a hospital."

"No, no hospital. You'll be questioned and arrested. I've called Dino. Some of his men are in the area and he's sending a car for you. Walk as far as you can and then call me with a street name and I'll let them know. Hide till we can get to you."

"Ok Reborn. Thanks. We'll call you in a bit." Yamamoto slurred the last words. The pair trudged out of the mansion, across the grounds and out the front gate. They walked down the road, passed two more immaculate houses with dark windows and then found a connecting way with a street sign. They sat down heavily on a darkened park bench and waited. No sooner had they gotten out of sight when police sirens squealed and several squad cars zoomed past in the direction of the bloodied mansion. They had left just in time.

"Someone must have heard all the shots and called the cops." Yamamoto commented. "If only they had come sooner then we wouldn't be in this mess." He grumbled and closed his eyes. His head was splitting and his whole body ached as he slouched back into the bench. His hands felt weak and the Katana he was holding clattered to the ground. Haru didn't say a word as she too closed her eyes and leaned against him heavily. It was too much to process and they were too physically hurt to do anything at the moment but pass out. Neither of them heard the car roll up, nor did they feel hands lift them into the back seat and drive them to a mafia safe house.

* * *

***How will our pair cope with the intense trauma they've just experienced? Haru gets a haircut and Dino gives Yamamoto the best advice a hurting young man could ever receive. Read the final conclusion in the next chapter. **


	6. Chapter 6

**_*The conclusion: Haru gets a haircut and Dino gives yamamoto the best advice at the right moment. Can our two young ones strengthen their bond or allow this experience to shatter it. _**

* * *

_***Chapt. 6***_

_***Where am I?***_

Yamamoto Takeshi groaned and rolled over. His eyes burned, while lifting a hand to his face he bumped a thick bandage making him wince. He rubbed the bandage on his chin lightly and all the events of the past night flooded back into his mind.

Haru! Where was Haru?! Yanking the sheet off and jumping up he jerked his head looking for her. Spotting his friend lying on a bed across the room he tried to run to her, but his feet didn't cooperate and he fell on the floor. In the process of collapsing he smacked a metal surgical tray which promptly fell over with a resounding crash. The noise startled Haru awake. She looked wildly until she laid eyes on Yamamoto.

"Takeshi!" she gasped in relief and went to help him up. "Are you ok?" He grinned and laughed.

"Falling seems to be becoming a specialty of mine. Im ok, are you ok?" Both were dressed in blue hospital-style scrub tops and pants. The room was small and white with several cots and cabinets holding medical supplies and equipment.

"Where are we?" He wondered aloud.

"I have no idea. But I know we're alive." Haru suddenly hugged him around the chest. He was so tall now that the top of her head didn't even come to his shoulder. Yamamoto's face turned serious and he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He put his chin lightly on the top of her head and enveloped her in a bear hug.

"Im glad we're alive too." And they stayed that way for a long moment in the quiet stillness of the hospital room. Then the silence was broken by a cough behind them. Yamamoto immediately reacted by whirling around, shoving Haru behind him and throwing a scalpel at the intruder.

"Yikes!" Dino dodged his head to the side as the scalpel bit through the air where his head had been a split second before. "That nearly killed me!"

"Dino!" the two teens exclaimed.

"Sheesh…this is the thanks I get for rescuing you two? I've spent all night cleaning things up with the cops at the Kosui mansion so they wouldn't suspect that you were the ones who sliced and diced them."

"Sorry about that. I guess Im just still wound really tight." Yamamoto smiled wearily. "Tell me what happened."

"Definitely, definitely, why don't we have a seat and I'll tell you what's been going on."

"Excuse me, sorry to interrupt, but its time for a dressing change." A female in a doctor's lab coat came up behind them.

"Of course." Dino said deferring to the woman. "Yamamoto, Haru, this is Dr. Kuri, an underground doctor specializing in keeping things on the downlow, she's the one who has been taking care of you while you're here." Both teens waved shyly at her.

"And I must say I'm not used to taking care of pediatrics so you two have been a treat for me. Haru, why don't we start with you while the men talk. Come sit on the table." And Dr. Kuri ushered the girl to a cot and pulled the privacy curtain partially around it. Yamamoto sat on another cot while Dino leaned against the wall.

"I'll get right to the point. The Kosui Yakuza is a fairly large organization with roots deep into the local white collar financial markets. We've been trying for years to bring them down but never had any luck. The man you killed was the top boss. He had a lot of enemies so we'll try to pin this event on one of them. However, he also had some powerful friends so this could be a serious problem for Vongola if they ever found out that it was you who took him down. The tenth isn't established here yet and my own organization doesn't have enough influence in this region to just tell them to back off so this could have been disastrous."

Yamamoto was only half listening. His eyes were on the slit in the curtain where Dr. Kuri had exposed Haru's back and was dabbing at it with an ointment. Her skin was raw with bright lines of skin-separating welts from the beating she had received with the riding crop. Black finger-shaped bruises were beginning to show up on her arms and around her neck. The welt across her cheek and bridge of her nose was blistered and she kept licking at the big split in her lip. Each wound was like a stab to his heart and a kick to the gut. In that instant he swore never to allow another person to hurt her like that again.

"Yamamoto, are you listening?" Dino brought his attention back to the conversation. "You need to tell me exactly what happened so that I can rig the evidence properly and make it look like someone else did it." Takeshi sighed.

"Ok. I'll tell you as much as I can but Im gonna leave some stuff out…specific stuff that happened to Haru. I want to spare her dignity as much as I can. Also, I have a request, only you and Reborn will ever know the full details. As far as everyone else goes, the story will be that she was kidnapped and I rescued her, simple as that. You've got to promise me this Dino."

"Ok Yamamoto, I can do that."

"Good…" and then Takeshi spilled his guts. He told it as dispassionately as he could but there were times when his anger welled up and he had to stop and get a hold on the revulsion welling up in his throat. At the end of the tale Dino patted him on the shoulder and looked him straight in the eye.

"Sometimes the bad guys get the drop on even the best and most talented among us Yamamoto. You blame yourself for what happened to her and you probably will for a long time but remember these words. And this is something that Reborn told me long ago when it comes to the women in our family and the horrible things that can sometimes happen to them. _'keep our women safe but not at the expense that we abandon them' _

"What do you mean not abandon them?"

"He meant that we do our utmost to protect and shield them from the evil outside of the family, but we should never see them as so delicate and precious that we end up keeping them at arms length and leaving them out of things in the name of keeping them safe. You saw first hand how that kind of approach backfired on you guys in the future. The girls ended up resentful and angry. We must treasure them and love them but never abandon them. Haru is tough and she'll get over this. It is the way of Mafioso women, which she is one through and through, otherwise she'd have cracked and left long ago. They're much stronger than we give them credit for."

"But what if she blames me for this?"

"So what if she does? It wont change the fact that you did the right thing and literally saved her ass. She isn't that type of girl to do that anyway. I just don't want to see you avoiding her thinking you'll be sparing her. If you do that, it will be as if you are punishing her for what happened.

If you two break down at this crucial moment, then that bastard Kosui wins. The torture he put you through will have worked as he intended and you lose. You two are bound by this experience and it can either destroy you both, or it can cement your bond into something so solid that nothing can break it. Right now Haru is literally bleeding and her heart is smashed, she's feeling vulnerable and scared. YOU are going to have to be the one to help her heal and let her know she's going to be ok and protected. Its your job as her guardian and friend. At first it'll probably be awkward since the trauma is still fresh, but so what? The Vongola famiglia needs the both of you and you need us. Come talk to me when you need to vent and let your grief out because you need to heal too, otherwise you're useless to her, the family, and most importantly yourself."

Takeshi sat deep in thought for a moment at these words.

"You're right Dino. I needed to hear that. Thanks a lot. I think I know what to do now."

"No problem, we'll get through this together. You're not alone in this. I've got your back."

And with that Dino went to tend to the matter of rigging evidence and bribing officials, leaving Yamamoto to his thoughts.

Dr. Kuri finished with Haru and then moved onto Yamamoto's face. She changed the bandage and checked the stitches.

"You will have a large scar here. Unfortunately there isn't any way around that, but if you are interested in a plastic surgeon I can recommend a good one." The doctor offered.

"No thanks. Im going to keep it as is." He said blithely. The doc nodded

"You two need to stay here another night or two because I want to monitor for any infection or signs of concussion. Both of you got hit pretty hard and you need to recover more. You don't have to stay in this room if you don't want. There is a lounge with a TV and couches down the hall. Dinner will be here shortly, we ordered delivery. Right now, you two and a few of Dino's men are the only ones here. If you need anything just page one of the buttons on the keypad in each room. I'll check on you two later but for now rest up."

"Thanks Dr. Kuri." Haru called as the woman left and then she sat down next to Takeshi on the edge of the cot.

* * *

They sat in silence for a long Haru hesitantly asked him.

"Why don't you want the plastic surgeon to fix your scar?"

"I want to keep this one so that every day when I look in the mirror I'll remember yesterday."

"Why?"

"So that I'll never let it happen again." He said grimly with flat determination. His voice was edged with a new hardness that hadn't been there before and it didn't escape Haru's attention.

"Do you hate me?" The girl asked miserably.

"Hate you?" Yamamoto turned in surprise. "How could I hate you?" Haru's chocolate brown eyes began to tear up.

"Because, it's my fault that this whole thing happened...I dragged you into a situation where you were almost killed! If you hadn't come for me, you wouldn't be scarred and Dino wouldn't have to clean up this mess." The tears dripped freely and she covered her face in her hands and pulled her knees up to her chest.

"Haru, I'm gonna ask you the same question. Do you hate me?"

The girl shook her head and wiped her nose on her sleeve.

"How could you think that? You're the one who saved my life and killed the man who tried to rape me. There's no way I could hate you." She sniffled with snot running down her face.

And Takeshi relaxed a sigh of relief.

"Listen Haru, and read my lips. YOU. ARE. WORTH. IT. I came after you because you are an important person to me. I would have come even if you had told me not to. What Kosui did wasn't your fault. The blame belongs entirely to him. If you blame yourself for this then he wins. He WONT win because we beat him. He's dead, we're alive, and there is one less scumbag in the world. Look at my face, I want you to take a long, hard look at this."

At this point he ripped off the bandage so she could look at the big, angrily red, stitched line down the right side of his chin next to his mouth. She winced at the sight of it. Yamamoto pointed a finger at the line and spoke seriously.

"We won. This scar is proof that we won and you ARE worth it. Every time you see my face I don't want you to feel guilt…I want you to feel pride because you know what? I came through for you and killed the bastards and protected you and I don't want you to feel bad about that. Don't ever doubt that I will always come for you. We're family, even closer family than with our parents. We are Famiglia. We do these things for each other with no questions asked, so feel good about it. I did it for you and you unquestioningly did it for me."

Haru swiped a sleeve across her face.

"How did I do it for you?" she asked.

"Are you kidding? You are the one that saved both our skins. I charged in stupidly and got caught. You willingly did what no woman should ever be asked to do. They were going to slit my throat and you stopped them. Then you jumped on his back and practically bit his ear off! That was amazing, I was so impressed at that! You never gave up, you fought him to the end and he never took your virtue from you. That officially makes you the toughest girl I have ever known! I'm proud of you. Being around you makes me want to be a better man." He emphasized and spread his arms with a wide grin. Haru wiped her eyes and broke into a toothy smile.

"Really? You're proud of me?"

"Of course! To tell you the truth, I had given up. I couldn't reach my knife. I was totally helpless and froze up. Your quick thinking in finding that blade and distracting them was pure genius. YOU are the reason we are alive right now. Because if you hadn't have done that, we'd be pushing up daisies right now. You turned an impossible situation around." He smiled and gestured for her to scoot over. She did, and he put an arm across her shoulders in a side hug.

"I pick you for my team any day." He laughed his usual baseball nut laugh. Haru began to cry again. But this time they were tears of relief. The barrier had been torn down, the tension between them had been broken, and both teens visibly relaxed their shoulders.

"Thank you." She was silent for a moment before her face reddened.

"I need to say one more thing before we stop talking about this." She blurted.

"Sure, what is it?"

"I need to apologize for kissing you and doing all that stuff on your lap and that you saw me naked. Im really sorry. I'm super embarrassed about it."

"Oh that," Takeshi's face turned deep red.

He hadn't really thought of that part yet. Secretly he didn't really WANT to get rid of the memory of the sensation of her weight on his hips and the delicious swelling he'd felt in his pants. The memory was such a tangled mix of pleasure and pain he really didn't have the brain power to sort it all out right now. His voice took on a bluffing nonchalance.

"You have nothing to be sorry about, believe me. It awkward and we'll both probably feel weird for a while but don't worry about it too much. I don't think less of you. You needed to do what you had to do and we really don't have to discuss it right now. Honestly, I'm too tired to work on that particular problem yet. We can sort all this stuff out later when it's not so fresh. In the meantime, I wont be weird about it if you wont be weird about it."

"I'll try to not be weird, but I think it'll be hard for me because I'm a girl and I feel ashamed about that stuff. Thanks Takeshi." Haru mumbled and leaned into his shoulder. They smiled shyly and good naturedly at each other.

* * *

_***later that day***_

Yamamoto munched his subway sandwich; his eyes glued to the flickering flat screen showing the Hanshin Tigers beating the crap out of the Yomiuri Giants in the 7th inning with no outs and bases loaded. He had been watching TV all afternoon in the hideout lounge, taking refuge in the comforting arms of sports fanaticism. After his big bravado speech to Haru he had been drained and ready to just crash and recuperate. Haru had watched on-and-off with him but most of the time she had dozed on the other end of the couch until she had wandered off saying something about taking a shower before dinner was delivered. He considered taking a bath too because he felt gross, but he was too tired to move. She's been gone a long time but then he heard her padding back down the hallway and turned to throw her a sandwich.

"Hey Haru, dinners here..." but he trailed off. Haru walked in front of the TV and twirled in a circle.

"What do you think? I had Dr. Kuri help me. She did a good job and its not too short." Yamamoto blinked for a moment.

"You cut your hair!" and indeed she had. Haru's hair now was a good seven inches shorter and barely skimmed her shoulders. The ends were a little ragged but overall it was still a good look for her.

"Looks good. I mean it looked good before too cause you're always pretty, but this is nice too." Yamamoto cheeks pinked up and he coughed when he realized what he had just said.

"You think so? You think I'm pretty?" Haru brightened. She wasn't used to being complimented by guys her own age.  
"Uh yeah, but why did you cut it?" Yamamoto tried to change the subject.

"I just felt I needed a change. I don't feel like the same person I was a few days ago." Haru's eyes looked distant and dark again. Yamamoto smiled sadly and nodded. Both of them were going to need time to adjust to their new perspectives on life.

"Well it's a nice look for you. I like it long too; the ponytail look is sporty and looks good in a baseball cap. Now come and eat your food and watch the last two innings with me." He patted the seat next to him. As they munched the sandwiches Haru turned to him.

"What do we do now Takeshi?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, my parents sold me to a yakuza group to pay their debts, so it's not like I have the option of just waltzing back home. And how do we explain your face to your dad and our friends?

Yamamoto thought for a moment as he chewed.

"You can stay with me and my dad for a while if you want, or I've got an aunt in town with a spare bedroom. Maybe Reborn will hook you up with your own apartment? I don't know. I'll think of some stupid sports or sword training excuse for my face. As for what we do now, we go back to doing what we did before; we go to school, I'll play baseball, you do your gymnastics team, we hang out with our friends, and we fight bad guys. It won't be exactly the same but we'll take it one day at a time. Maybe go get some counseling to get through all the psychological and emotional crap that's gonna come up. Let's not dwell on all the specifics now, my brain is too fried."

"I like that idea." Haru smiled and took another bite.

Later that night, Dr. Kuri went to check on her two patients. They weren't in the hospital room so she followed the flickering light of the TV down the hall. She found Yamamoto sprawled across the couch with his mouth open, drooling and snoring quietly. Haru was snuggled up against him hugging a pillow with a peaceful look on her face. Dr. Kuri smiled and took a blanket off a nearby shelf and spread it over them. Dino came up behind her.

"How are they doing?" he asked.

"I think they are going to be just fine." The doctor smiled.

* * *

***THE END***


End file.
